Fly
by detectiveram
Summary: Robin could fly.  Kaldur stayed on the ground.  His dreams were moderate.  Aqualad fic.  Thoughts...


Kaldur sat by and watched his team after he finished his meditation. Artemis was doing target practice-her arrows flawlessly hitting their targets. M'gann and Wally were sparring. Connor was practicing with Black Canary. He glanced up to see if he could find Robin. He caught sight of a blur of black, signifying Robin was still going through his routines.

Black Canary caught him glancing up at the flying bird. She gave him a smile before turning her attention to correcting Connor. The computer's voice interrupted the relative silence. "Fail. Kid Flash." He heard M'gann giggled and Wally moan from the ground. "Good job M'gann. That was an epic flip. Better luck next time Kid Fail." It was Robin, voicing his opinions from above. "Hey!" Wally yelled indignantly (not that Kaldur believed he had much),"Come down here and say that to my face!" A cackle filled the room and Kaldur believed this would now turn into some amusing antic by the two. "Nope! You'll have to come up here!" Robin yelled, swinging now on the trapeze.

Kaldur just shook his head in disbelief. It amazed him how effortlessly Robin could, well, fly. "No fair!" Wally replied. "Come on! What are you afraid of?" Robin continued. Acting on Robin's taunt, Wally climbed the ladder in just enough time to see Robin land on the other platform. "Dude!" "Come on over! Unless you're afraid to fall…" Robin grinned. Kaldur continued watching the spectacle from the ground. Wally stayed on his side. He spoke up soon enough, "How about you teach me?" Robin gave a shrug, barely noticeable from the ground. M'gann soon joined them, floating up to Robin's side. "That is a brilliant idea! Would you teach me as well?" She asked joyfully.

Robin cocked his head at her request. "But you already fly! Like fly, fly!" He protested. "Yes, but," She started sheepishly, "I see how much joy it brings you and I wanted to share. I know I fly, but there's something about your way that is fun! Oh, I'm speaking nonsense." He gave her a laugh. "It's all good M'gann. I'd be happy to teach you guys." He smiled and then added quickly, "TEAM BONDING!"

"So, the boy wonder's teaching us to fly, huh? Sounds like fun." It was Artemis who said that, appearing on Wally's platform. Apparently Wally failed to notice her arrival until she spoke. "Gah! Where'd you come from?" Artemis smirked. "Do I really have to explain _that_ concept to you?" The amusement in her voice was clear. "Gah! Again! The horror!"

Kaldur finally noticed that Connor and Black Canary were finished, signaling the end of their training period. He was joining the group above. "Yeah Supey! Who needs Superman when I can teach you to fly?" Robin exclaimed as he jumped off the platform quickly catching the trapeze. Connor gave a rare smile to his teammate.

The sight of Kaldur's teammates happily watching and enjoying the youngest fly filled him with satisfaction with a twinge of sorrow. He was so different from them. His dreams were moderate for a superhero. He gained satisfaction from helping and training. He was never one to be the center of attention. It was so deeply rooted in him to be conservative. But now, he felt himself wishing that he could be like them. For the first time he wanted to fly. He shook off the feeling. Someone had to be grounded on this time—literally, figuratively—he wasn't sure which. It might as well be him who lived below the ground and beneath the waves.

He then proceeded to get up and speak with Black Canary before she left for the day. "Thank you for coming. Your teachings are most helpful." She gave him a smile and put a hand on his shoulder. "You kids are sure talented. Some of you just need a little guidance." Laughter echoed from above and they both turned their attention to the laughing teens. "Not cool Artemis." Wally yelled. Apparently she had 'accidently' dropped the young speedster. He lay in the net below, Robin finally coming down to help him. "Sorry Baywatch. You're heaver then you look." She smirked. The laughter continued. Kaldur shook it off and turned his attention back to the now concerned-looking woman. "You know, you could join them. As I recall Robin so loudly proclaimed team bonding." He shook his head. "I must prepare my report for Batman. Then, I must return to my King in Atlantis." "You know," She started, "No matter who you are, you're still just a teenager." She grabbed the rest of her things and proceeded to exit the room, but not before leaving him with one more piece of advice. "Blow off Batman and Aquaman for once and just have some fun."

Her words conflicted him. He had ignored direct orders before, but with good reason. He looked back up to his teammates. "Maybe, I… No. I must be responsible. That is what I was taught." He made his way out of the room, but was stopped by the sudden appearance of Robin. "Hey! Why don't you come and join in?" The smile on his face was endearing. "Or, you know, at least just hang out with us if you want." Artemis added, appearing as well. He glanced up at the now watching Connor, M'gann, and Wally. "Come on dude!" Wally yelled. Kaldur finally gave in. "Maybe just this once I will get my feet off the ground."

* * *

><p>It was a mere three hours later that a worried Aquaman and a angry Batman appeared in Mount Justice. They met each other's eyes. "You haven't heard from Aqualad either?" "No." Batman growled. "He was supposed to file a report with me a half hour ago. Aquaman shook his head. "This isn't like him. I am concerned for his safety." The two heroes searched the mountain without any sign of the team. They found the young heroes outside, watching the night sky, Aqualad regaling them with stories of Atlantis. "It was then that the King formed the trident from the magical forces surrounding. The power contained was enough to drive back the forces from the other region. He made the decision that sank Atlantis beneath the waves." "No way! You guys weren't always water breathing?" M'gann asked excitedly. "No my friend. We used to gaze at the stars in the sky. I don't think I've ever wanted so much to be human until I saw the sky." "You know, I still don't believe in this whole 'magical forces' stuff—ow! Artemis! But that's a pretty cool story." Wally finished, now rubbing his arm. Kaldur gave a smile. "My friend, it does sound very odd, but for most of my life I could scarcely believe things could fly until I saw a bird. That is magical to me." Robin then nudged him. "Hey, but now you can!"<p>

Aquaman choose now to speak. "Kaldur'amn." At the sound of his King's voice Kaldur quickly stood up to face him. "My King." He looked almost embarrassed. "My apologizes. I lost track of time. And… I might have chosen to as well." Aquaman looked confused. "You chose to ignore the time?" "Yes. I followed some questionable advice to uh, ignore my responsibilities and be a teenager." "Who gave you such irresponsible advice!" He demanded. "Black Canary, my King." A faint smile might have apperaned on Batman's face. "Was it worth it?" He simply asked. The two heroes saw the glimmer of joy in his eyes. "Yes. It very much was."


End file.
